Light Hair, Light Hearted
by Chikorita-Trainer1
Summary: One-shot. When Seto accidentally dyes his hair blonde, it makes him popular. But he has to understand that deep down, he's still the same person. And it'll take disregarding Mokuba for him to realize it.


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Light Hair, Light-Hearted

By Chikorita-Trainer1

G

Disclaimer: I don't own YGO. And my Mom was the one who thought up the title for this story.

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Seto Kaiba always seemed unhappy. The only emotions he ever showed were anger, jealousy, hatred and contempt. You'd think his bedroom would be painted black with padded walls- somewhere that looked like his personality; dark…creepy…cold.

The truth is, Seto Kaiba was just an expert on dissembling. He could hide his emotions behind an unforgiving face. Intimidating, it kept most observers at bay.

His attire was always sharp and snappy, too. He usually wore a trench coat of some kind, and he never showed any skin. Always long sleeves and long pants. It made one wonder if he had something to hide. Cuts? Bruises?

Everyone around him seemed carefree and happy with their appearances. Even his little brother, who never brushed his hair and always wore bright-colored, mismatched clothing (it always seemed weird, since such a rich boy dressed like it was laundry day).

Speaking of hair, that's another thing that defined Seto Kaiba. His hair was always combed neatly with sharp bangs and evenly trimmed locks. (A/N: Except in episodes like "The Past is Prologue" when they made him have a mullet. He's WAY too cool for that.)

Yes…Seto Kaiba was the image of dignity…until one day when the world saw the silver lining in the dark cloud that was him.

It all started when young Mokuba Kaiba came home from a friend's house one day.

"Hey Seto, look what Kenta did!" he said.

"What the--"

"Isn't it cool?" laughed Mokuba. He was showing his brother the blonde highlights he'd gotten.

"You look like an F-ing…pop star," said Seto.

"Shut up," said Mokuba. "He let me keep the highlighting shampoo. I might want to bleach my bangs next. Then I'd look like Yugi!"

"No brother of mine is going to run around looking like that little freak," said Seto.

"Whatever," said Mokuba.

The next morning, Seto awoke to the buzz of his alarm clock. 5:45 AM. He dragged himself out of bed and into the shower.

After standing under the hot water for a few minutes, the teenager grabbed a bottle of shampoo. It smelled unfamiliar to him, but he didn't really care. He poured some into his palm and scrubbed it into his hair. He felt it burn a little, and it started to reek of chemicals, but he had to wash his hair.

Rinsing his hair now, he watched as the suds cut through the grime on the floor of the shower stall. _Odd,_ he thought. _It's leaving the floor perfectly white…without scrubbing._ Little did he know that the shower stall floor wasn't the only thing being turned white.

He shut off the water and stepped out of the shower, and tied a towel around his abdomen. He'd brought his change of boxers into the bathroom with him, so he but those on, and then his school uniform pants. Toweling off his head, he trudged back into his room.

He put on a white shirt before his school jacket.

He picked up a comb…went over to the mirror…and almost choked.

Seto Kaiba…was blonde.

"AAAAAAHHHHH!"

"That can't be good," Mokuba concluded, being awoken much earlier than he needed to be. He got out of bed and ran to his brother's room. "Seto, what's wrong? If it's about that dead rat I can explain; I chased it into your room…and beat it to death…"

Seto just stared at his reflection in horror.

"Whoa, is that you or did you trade heads with Joey?" joked Mokuba. Seto frowned angrily at his brother.

"How could this have…YOU!" he snarled.

"What?"

"You! You and your stupid, fruity highlights!" Seto accused.

"Hey, it's not my fault. You must have accidentally used the bleach instead of your own shampoo. It should wash out in about three months," said Mokuba.

"I can't be seen like this!" said Seto. "Blonde hair? This just isn't me."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better…" said Mokuba. "I think you look pretty cool."

"Really?" said Seto.

"Yeah. Why don't you leave it in for a while? Maybe this'll be good for you."

"Well…I guess it is a nice change," said Seto, turning to profile. "Alright, I'll keep it."

At school, Yugi and his friends weren't sure of what they saw.

"Is that Kaiba?" whispered Tea to Yugi.

"Who?" asked Yugi. Tea pointed to the blonde in Kaiba's seat. "Whoa, I don't know. Maybe it's a new guy."

"Joey Wheeler's on da case!" said Joey. He strutted over to Seto, thinking he was another person, and slapped him on the shoulder. "Hey Man! You new here? The name's Joey, what's yours?"

"It's going to be The One Who Killed Joey Wheeler if you touch me again," said Seto.

"K-Kaiba! So it is you. Why're you blonde?" asked Joey.

"It was a freak shampooing accident," said Seto. "I used my brother's highlighting shampoo by mistake."

"Well…it's certainly a…different look for you, Kaiba!" said Yugi. "It looks kind-of cool."

"Thanks," said Seto. _Did I really just say that?_

"It looks totally natural," said Tea. "Except for those dark roots…" she pawed through his part.

"Get your hands off me!" he shouted, slapping Tea away. She shrieked and then began to laugh. Seto did too, but then gasped and covered his mouth with his hand.

"What's wrong?" asked Yugi.

"Nothing."

During the students' lunch period, a lot of the kids went across the hall to visit Duke in the other classroom, where he would be wowing the ladies with his dice tricks.

Seto usually stayed in his own classroom and ate alone. But not today. For some reason, today, he wanted attention. He followed Yugi and company into the other room. As soon as he entered, the girls stopped paying attention to Duke and flocked all over Seto!

"Love the do, Kaiba," said one girl.

"Yeah, you look really cute," agreed another.

"Um, thanks," said Seto.

"When did you dye it?" asked another girl.

"Wow, Kaiba's really getting a lot of attention!" commented Yugi.

"Ah, he bleaches his hair and suddenly he's da ladies' man!" grumbled a jealous Joey. "'ey girls! Care to run your fingers t'rough dis?" Yugi and Tristan groaned as Joey licked his hand and smoothed his hair back. When no girls took notice, he got grumpy again. "Argh, I got more blonde hair dan dat guy!"

"So, Kaiba…want to go out sometime?" inquired one girl. Then, Yugi and everyone saw Seto Kaibe do something they had never seen him do…he blushed!

"Uh, no thanks," said Seto. Then he backed out of the swarm of girls that had enveloped him. _That was weird, _he thought as he leaned against the wall in the hallway. _But it was kind-of fun._

"Can you believe dat creep!" snarled Joey.

"What's wrong?" asked Tea. "It seems like this new look might be good for Kaiba."

"Because, I mean, outside he's the cool new guy, but underneath he's still the same old rich snob!"

"Well, at least you're being mature enough not to assume how people are based on their outward appearances," said Tristan. "But if he socializes more, maybe he'll stop being such a creep."

"Not a chance!" said Joey. "If he won't accept us when we're nice to him with brown hair, he probably won't care for those girls tryin' 'a flirt wit him!"

"What are you so jealous about?" asked Tristan.

"Uh…I ain't jealous…" said Joey.

"You just can't stand to see Kaiba slightly happy, can you?" said Tristan.

"Well, dat guy doesn't deserve to be happy!"

"What right do you have to say that?" demanded Tea. "Everyone deserves to be happy."

"Hey, now that Kaiba's not as grouchy, maybe this is our chance to really get to know him," said Yugi.

But Seto had been listening from the hall. Did everyone suddenly like him just because of his hair? And if so…then all this liking of him was false.

After school that day, Seto kept getting more positive reactions from people about his hair.

"Hey Kaiba, you look good!"

"You look great with blonde hair!"

"That color really works for you!" said random people. A small smile crept up on Seto's face. People _liked_ him.

At the last period of the day, Seto and the class had P.E. After half an our of drills and basketball, it was time to shower. Seto had brought the bottle of highlighting shampoo, with which to dye his roots.

But then he heard Yugi talking to Duke.

"So Kaiba's like…popular now? All because of his hair?" asked Duke.

"Looks that way," said Yugi.

"Man, he's pretty smart. Maybe I should dye my hair. Hey, maybe it'll catch on and become a fad!"

"I doubt it. Besides," said Yugi. "it wasn't his idea; he accidentally used his brother's shampoo. He'll probably wash it out soon."

"Really? Everyone likes him now," said Duke. "I guess he'll never be normal."

Word had spread around pretty quickly that week. Soon Mokuba began hearing gossip about his brother.

"I hear Seto Kaiba bleached his hair because he wants to change his identity!"

"That's not true! I hear he dyed it because by accident!"

"He's been flirting with a ton of girls!" Mokuba had heard many comments, and he felt the need to stop it.

"None of what you guys hear is true!" he yelled, slamming his locker. "My brother dyed his hair by accident! He's going to wash it out!"

"Why are you so mad?" asked Kenta. "I thought you wanted your brother to be normal and have friends."

"You make him sound like a sleazy, girl-hopping pimp! And he's not like that!" yelled Mokuba. Then the bell rang and Mokuba went outside to wait for his brother to pick him up.

Unfortunately, Seto had other things to do. Even though he'd never succumb to the girls, he liked the attention and wanted to see how far he could take it.

And so Mokuba sat in the schoolyard and waited. It wasn't so bad; nothing he wasn't used to. Most of his life he'd spent waiting…wondering…hoping…alone.

But things didn't really get better from that point on. First, his school chums started to disappear about ten at a time. Soon he was just watching some 8th graders hang out and talk. He wasn't all by himself yet, but those 'big kids' surely wouldn't want anything to do with him. He kind-of wished he had friends to talk to and play with. When he watched the 8th graders reminisce, he longed for a life like that. One he could call his own. One that, if someone else was watching from his point of view, could be the least bit envious of. Like when you're at a friend's house, and they know where everything in their house is, or when they start discussing something you don't really understand…they know how things work in _their _lives, and you don't because you're the observer.

All he could do was sit there and be lonely. He could sense that the 8th graders thought he looked pretty pathetic.

Soon those kids left. Mokuba felt like he was in the Old West. He wouldn't have been surprised if a tumbleweed went rolling by. No more cars were even driving by, because all the kids had been picked up.

Where's Seto? he asked.

He waited for about half an hour, and still no sign of his brother. He felt his jaw start to quiver and his nose start to burn. He knew what was happening; he was going to start crying.

Stupid Seto! Did he forget about me?

He slumped against the wall of the schoolyard and sniffed back his tears.

Seto however, was hanging out next to his red car that he'd bought during the Orichalcos saga, with a flock of peers around it.

"Heh, yeah I bought this on the spot," he bragged. "I needed to get across town, so I got out the checkbook, signed over fifty-grand and drove off in this beauty." All the girls around him giggled and the guys gawked at his car.

"Wow, smart, rich and good-looking," commented a girl.

"You're everything a girl could want, you know," hinted another.

"Too bad none of you girls are anything I would want," said Seto. He glanced at his watch. _Oh, shoot! _"And I have to go, anyway. Goodbye," he said, getting into his car and driving off.

"Man, and I thought my car was sweet," said Duke, all alone in his 50s convertible.

Seto sped off in the direction of his brother's school. _I can't believe I let those girls talk to me long enough to forget about Mokuba!_ he scolded himself. _I hope he's okay._

Mokuba was okay, outside at least. Inside he was scared and confused. Seto screeched to a stop when he saw his little brother crying on the steps of his school/

When Mokuba lifted his head and saw the car, he grabbed his backpack and ran over.

"Mokuba, I'm sorry. I lost track of time and--"

"Hmph!" said Mokuba as he got in the back seat.

Great. Now he won't talk to me.

As soon as the Kaibas got home, Mokuba left his backpack in the foyer and dashed upstairs to his room.

"Mokuba, I said I was sorry. Now stop being so immature--"

"Leave me alone!" cried Mokuba, slamming the door to his room. _So this is what I get for wishing my brother was normal. I guess what I really wanted was for him to be nice to me, not make friends and have fun without me. _he thought angrily. _But can I really complain? I wanted him to have a normal life. But I guess it's normal for someone his age…to not want to spend time with their little brother. _

It's this stupid hair! thought Seto as he paced around downstairs. _I let myself get caught up on all that attention I was receiving! What do they know about me anyway? What's the point of making friends if all they care about is how you look? It's time for this hair to go._ Then he noticed Mokuba's backpack. _Well, I may as well see what Mokuba has in the way of homework…_ he thought.

Digging through Mokuba's things, Seto found a note. _Heh, can't believe they get away with passing notes in class._ He unfolded it and read it.

Mokuba, did U no ppl R saying UR brother's dating Mai Valentine?

-Kenta

WHAT!

It's just a rumor. She went out w/ him 'cuz a his blonde hair.

THAT'S NOT TRUE!

Well, NE way, ppl R talking about him. A LOT.

I hate those stupid abbreviations, thought Seto. _But what I hate more is that I've become the hottest topic in gossip. That tears it. This blonde hair has been in long enough! It may take three months to fade, but I was born a brunette and I'll die a brunette. Wait a minute…dye!_

thought Seto. 

Later that evening, Mokuba was still in his room, grumping about what had happened. He had turned off the lights so that his brother might think that he was asleep, but Seto knew that he couldn't have fallen asleep by five PM.

"Mokuba?" he said as he opened the door. He didn't turn on the light, but Mokuba could still see him.

"What do you want?" growled Mokuba.

"Just to say…I'm sorry I forgot to pick you up today. I was talking to some people at school and…"

"Everyone loves you now that you're blonde," said Mokuba.

"I know. I found this note in your bag…apparently I'm the talk of the town," said Seto.

"Yeah," said Mokuba. "but I always thought you'd put me before anything else…"

"Me too. But all the attention I was getting was kind-of…well, nice."

"Whatever," said Mokube. "I know I have no right to interfere with your life. If you like being a blonde, then that's that."

"Actually, Mokuba," said Seto. "I like having brown hair just fine." He turned on the light and Mokuba gasped.

"Did you dye your--"

"Yeah. I ran to the store and got some brown dye. I wasn't going to wait three months for my hair to revert," he said.

"I've got my brother back!" Mokuba cried happily. He leaped out of bed and into Seto's arms.

"He never left, Kid," said Seto, ruffling Mokuba's hair. _And he never will._

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El fin.

Please review, thanks.

Oh, and about the car…well, there're episodes where Joey duels Valon, and in one of those episodes, Seto signs a check to buy a red car. Sorry to spoil it for you.


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